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Air cargo container

a cargo container and air technology, applied in the field of air cargo containers, can solve the problems of not being able to meet not having a match for determined thieves or terrorists, and tamper-resistant closure mechanisms, etc., and achieve the effect of facilitating bulk inspection of cargo

Inactive Publication Date: 2000-04-11
MCDONNELL DOUGLAS
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  • Summary
  • Abstract
  • Description
  • Claims
  • Application Information

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

It is also an object of the invention to provide an air cargo container which facilitates bulk inspection of the cargo for contraband.

Problems solved by technology

Unfortunately, the tamper-resistant closure mechanisms of known air cargo containers and, indeed, the relatively-light construction of the such known containers themselves, are no match for determined thieves or terrorists who would tamper with an air cargo container before it is loaded onto an aircraft.
More significantly, however, such known containers are incapable of providing an unambiguous indication to the aircraft loadmaster, flight crew or the like whether or not tampering has occurred after original inspection of the container.

Method used

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Examples

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Embodiment Construction

Referring to the drawings, a pair of exemplary half-width baggage containers 10 in accordance with the invention for use aboard a DC-10 passenger aircraft are illustrated in FIG. 1. Each container 10 includes a relatively-rigid housing 12 which defines an interior space 14 of nominal volume within which to receive passenger baggage 16. A pair of hinged door panels 18 located on each side 20 of the container 10 swing upwardly to provide access to the container's interior space 14. When closed, the door panels 18 sealingly engage the housing 12 to render the interior space 14 "air-tight," i.e., capable of maintaining an achieved differential interior pressure both on the ground, when the cargo area inside the aircraft's fuselage is at ambient pressure at ground level ("ambient ground pressure"), and during flight, when the aircraft's cargo area is pressurized to a flight pressure substantially less than ambient ground pressure but substantially above ambient pressure at flight altitud...

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Abstract

An air cargo container includes a relatively-rigid housing defining an air-tight interior space of nominal volume within which to receive cargo. The housing substantially maintains the nominal volume of the interior space upon pressurizing or evacuating the interior space relative to ambient pressure, whereby a differential interior pressure is achieved before loading the container aboard an aircraft. Where the differential interior pressure is achieved by pressurizing the interior space, air or another suitable gas is injected under pressure into the housing. Where the differential interior pressure is obtained by evacuating the housing's interior space, or where the process of pressurizing the interior space includes a prior evacuation step, the gases drawn from within the housing are preferably analyzed to detect the presence of contraband within the received cargo. Sensors on the housing confirm that an achieved interior pressure is substantially maintained over time.

Description

The invention relates generally to cargo containers used in air transport and, more specifically, to air cargo containers capable of maintaining a differential interior pressure relative to ambient air subsequent to being loaded with cargo. The invention further relates to methods for monitoring air cargo containers for tampering, for detecting the presence of contraband within such containers prior to loading the container onto an aircraft, and for controlling the operation of pressure-sensitive devices, such as explosive detonators, which might otherwise be present within the container's received cargo.Modern aircraft rely heavily on the use of cargo containers of standardized dimension to maximize both the aircraft's cargo carrying capacity and to expedite the loading and unloading of cargo contained in such containers. Specifically, air cargo is typically loaded into containers whose external dimensions closely match the cargo area defined within the fuselage of a given aircraft...

Claims

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Application Information

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Patent Type & Authority Patents(United States)
IPC IPC(8): B65D88/14B65D88/00G01N1/22G01N1/00G01N1/02
CPCB65D88/14G01N1/22G01N2001/022G01N2001/007
Inventor DANILYCHEV, ALEXANDER V.
Owner MCDONNELL DOUGLAS
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